If you are involved in a truck accident and the truck driver was at fault, then they are liable for your injuries – right? In some cases, yes – but there are also situations in which other parties may be liable, including the employer of the truck driver. You can learn more by continuing to read or you can contact Law Offices of Fernando D. Vargas at 909-982-0707 if you require a free legal consultation.
Understanding California’s Laws on Negligent Hiring, Supervision, or Employee Retention
According to California law, an employer is liable for their employee’s intentional wrongful acts, recklessness, or negligence if it can be determined that the employer either knew or should have known that their employee was a risk to others. In short, the law makes a company liable for its failure to protect others in employing dangerous persons.
Examples of When This Law is Relevant
To understand whom this law protects, consider these examples:
- A taxi company hiring a driver with a history of sexual assault and that drier committing battery on a passenger
- A restaurant not mandating hand washing and diners succumbing to food poisoning
- A school district ignoring evidence that their teacher is inappropriate toward children and the teacher assaults a child
- A hospital does not have appropriate evacuation protocol and a patient is seriously injured when they slip and fall during a mandatory evacuation
These are just a few examples but they all have at least one thing in common: The employer should have known that the employee was dangerous to others.
How to Prove that an Employer Was Negligent in Their Hiring, Supervision, or Retention of an Employee
To prove that this, your attorney will need to show that the employee in question was unfit or not competent to perform the work they were hired to do, that their employer either knew or should have known, that the incompetence harmed you, and that negligence in hiring, supervising, or retaining the employee was a major factor in the harm.
There Are Often More Than One Party Responsible for Injuries
If you were injured in an accident due to a person who was performing their job at the time of the injury, you do not necessarily have to decide if they or their employer was more at fault. In California, comparative negligence is the law of the land. That means that at-fault parties are responsible for the percentage of their fault.
If you have been injured due to another party acting negligently or recklessly, we invite you to contact Law Offices of Fernando D. Vargas at 909-982-0707 for a free legal consultation.
